Mineral jig



J. H. MOORE April 11, 1961 MINERAL JIG 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 22, 1958 ATTORNEY J. H. MOORE MINERAL JIG April 11, 1961 2 Sheets-Shea?l 2 Filed 001;. 22, 1958 J/wes f- Maa/'el BY M ATTORNEY atent Patented Apr. 1l, 1961 MINERAL HG James H. Moore, 410 Park Ave., Irvine, Ky.

Filed Oct. 22, 1958, Ser. No. 768,933

7 claims. (cl. 299-455) This invention relates to mineral jigs, of the general type known as a Harz jig, and has for its object to provide additional features additional to the basic design thereof so that substantially improved operation and substantially improved concentrates result therefrom.

The Harz type jig is composed of several cells each having a fixed sieve, a plunger reciprocating in a water compartment known as a hutch, adjoining and below the sieve compartment, a central or side draw, and a drawotf tube for the concentrate discharged from the draw. Each cell also has a draw-olic from the hutch for collecting particles which pass through the sieve. Water is continuously fed into the plunger compartment. The

rmaterial fed to the top of the sieve of the iirst cell has been crushed and is of a predetermined maximum size which may vary with the type of ore being treated. Separation of the particles is accomplished by stratifying the materials into layers of dilerent specific gravities, the lower layer being removed from the draw-olf and the remainder being discharged to the next succeeding cell.

The stratification is accomplished by water-pulsating the mass on top of the sieve at such rate that a very thick suspension of the mixed particles is given an opportunity to rise and fall. The result is a hindered settling. The jig by providing an alternately open and compact bed maintainsv a suspension of high specific gravity while permitting particle re-arrangement when the bed is open. According to the hindered settling the coarse grains go to the bottom while the lighter grains go to the top and the coarse-light and fine-heavy grains in the middle.

Additionally, since there is a substantial continuous flow of water, a second type of stratification which is known as stratification trickling occurs. According to this, the tendency is for the tine-heavy grains to go to the bottom, the coarse-light grains to the top and the coarse-heavy and line-light grains in the middle.

These two types of stratification will be balanced or unbalanced as desired, depending upon the type of material being concentrated. Adjustments mustbe made in a jig to permit the adaptation. The point not previously recognized, apparently, and not provided for in any jig of commercial design, is that the feed ore changes its character from time to time, perhaps several times in an hour and that the adjustments to accommodate changing head feed should be capable of being made rapidly by an operator without shutting down the jig. The ore may run very rich for a few minutes causing an excellent concentrate to be discharged from all three cells. It may then suddenly begin to run Very lean for a period, to the point where the heavy part of the bed in the third and maybe also the second cell, will be lost unless rapid correction can be made by the operator. This will be better understood by reference to actual figures. It is usual to iind that values in the head feed may vary from 2% to 12% during an eight hour run. During periods of high values the jig must be altered to draw olf the bed as rapidly as it builds up in order to prevent loss in thel tails. On the other hand, when the values approach 2% it may be necessary to adjust the jig so that no product at all is removed from the third cell, all acceptable material being recirculated to the second cell to prevent loss of its bed.

Furthermore, there may be a fluctuation in particle size. Suppose the first cell is set to classify size values of minus 3A and plus 1/2 mesh, the second cell to classify values of minus 1/2 and plus mesh and number three cell to classify minus B; and plus 1A mesh with the 'minus Mt mesh passing to the hutch. And suppose that there is a temporary period when a dearth of minus 1/2 plus occurs. The bed of the number 2 cell would be lost and a poor product would be drawn off unless prompt adjustment were made. The proper adjustment would be to reduce the depth of the bed in that cell with a corresponding reduction in draw-off.

Additionally, the head feed may, for a temporary period, contain many liats and elongated particles of high ore value but which are oated through to the tails. The iiats can be saved by causing a loosening of the bed and by allowing more settling time if the adjustments can be made promptly.

All of these conditions require adjustments in order to ohtaina maximum yield of a high grade product. In turn, the requirement is to maintain a Abed of proper specific gravity at a depth such that no good products are lost to the tails on the one hand, but thick enough so that no poor products go to make up the bed. Once the bed of high value material is lost the operator must meticulously restore it and much poor concentrate can be drawn oif in the process of re-building it.

It is therefore a principal object of this invention to provide a jig having controls over the concentrate discharge, the depth of concentrate ring, the outlet gate, the water flow and pulsation for each cell with each control being separately and manually operable in a direct and simple manner.

A further object is to provide adjustments for the concentrate discharge, the concentrate ring and outlet gate for each cell operable quickly and at any time, not only to vary their operation but capable of eliminatingthe stratifying operation of any one or all cells. Thus, if the third cell, for example, begins to lose its heavy concentrate bed stratification may be wholly or partially stopped and, if desired, the feed thereto may be re-cycled to the second cell in whole or in part to guard its heavy concentrate bed. Inferior concentrate can thus be prevented from diluting good concentrate in the final bink and proper functioning of the active cells can be main tained. j f

The invention will be better understood with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein my invention is illustrated and in which- Figure '1 is a front elevation of my improved jig,

Figure 2 is a transverse vertical section taken along the line 2-2 of Figure l,

Figure 3 is a horizontal View taken along the line 3-3 of Figure 2,

Figure 4 is an enlarged vertical section taken along the line 4--4 of Figure 2, and

Figure 5 is a vertical section taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 4.

The jig is composed essentially of three cells which j 8 thus causes the plungers 5 to pulsate the water in the hutches. Since water is constantly fed into the hutches by a supply line 10, there being one supply line for each hutch, each controlled by a valve 11, there is a constant ow of water under pulsation through each hutch.

Adjacent each compartment in which each plunger reciprocates, each hutch has a screen or sieve 12, 12a, 12b extending over substantially the entire area thereof. Each sieve is supported on an open grid near the top of its hutch so that the hutch walls extend somewhat above the sieve. The mesh of the screen is chosen for particular ore and conditions encountered. In a manganese operation, for example, the sieves of each cell may be selected to permit particles smaller than 1%: inch to pass through the screen to the hutch. The hutch products may be removed from time to time by opening each of the valves 13, 13a and 13b.

Extending vertically downwardly through each hutch 4, 4a and 4b is a concentrate draw-off tube 14, 14a and 14b respectively. Each of these tubes extends upwardly through its screen, terminating a short distance thereabove. Fitting into the upper end of each tube 14, 14a and 14b is an extensible tube section 15, as best shown in the View, Figure 4, which is essentially the same for all three cells. Each extension 15 is supported by a wire clip 16 attached'to the bottom of a screw threaded member 17 which has threaded engagement with a collar 1S. Each collar 18 is welded to a plate 19 which, in turn, is welded to a protective concentrate ring 20, which is concentric with its tube 14, 15.

The plates 19 are each positioned between guides 21 and 22 provided on the base 1. As best shown in Figures 3, 4 and 5, each plate 19 has two spaced racks 23 welded thereon for engagement by pinions 24 carried by a shaft 25. Each shaft 25 is journalled in bearings 26 mounted on the base 1 and each shaft has a hand wheel 27 on the outer end thereof.

jWith this arrangement it will be seen that, if conditions are such that the depth of the bed on the screen 12 should be reduced, then the hand wheel 27 should be rotated in a direction to lower the concentrate ring 28. This will also lower the collar 18, the shaft 17 and the tube extension 15. If it is desired to lower or raise the tube extension 15 it may then be done by rotating the shaft 17 in its collar 18 by means of its hand wheel 44. After lowering the concentrate ring 20, if it is found that the draw-off is too lean the tube extension 15 may be elevated to the point where nothing can pass into the drawotf tube 14, thus forcing all feed to that cell to pass to the next cell, if the first or second cell is involved, or to the tails if the third cell is involved. In practice this would not be done in the case of the third cell because if the concentrate were running very lean it would `be adjusted to draw olf the best possible product and that product be recirculated.

The depth of material on each sieve 12, 12a, 12b is determined by the height of its respective gate 28 for the respective cells which guard the outlet for water and rejected particles. It will be seen in Figure 1 that the feed is introduced on top of the sieve 12 by the feed chute 29, slightly below the level of the discharge gate 28, so that feeding will occur by pulsation of the water in the jig. The sieve 12a is slightly lower than the sieve 12 and the sieve 12b is slightly lower than sieve 12a. Each gate has two spaced racks 30 welded thereto, for engagement with two pinions 31 carried by a shaft 32. Each shaft 32 is mounted in bearings 33 mounted in the base 1 and is rotatable by a hand wheel'34 keyed thereon to elevate and lower its gate 28. When and if desired, lock screws 42 may be tightened to hold the gates against accidental slipping up or down. It will thus be seen that each of the gates 28 is actually a darn whose height may be varied to regulate the depth of material on its respective sieve and the escape of tailings from the cell guarded thereby.

When it becomes desirable to recirculate the draw-off from the third cell, the outlet from the draw-olf tube 14b is diverted into the hopper 3S of an elevator 36 by means of a diversion outlet 37. The buckets 38 of the elevator 36 lift the draw-off product to a hopper 39 Where it may be directed either to the top of the sieve 12a in the second cell or to the top of the sieve 12b in the third cell by the extensible feed tube 40 which may be swung to either position by virtue of its universal connection 41 with the bottom of the hopper 39. All materials which pass across the top of the final gate 28 is waste, known as tailings, and is conducted toward a tailings pile by the chute 43.

The operation will now be briefly described. Crushed material is fed onto the chute 29 and flows through the cells by virtue of the continuous ow of water through the hutches and the pulsations imparted thereto by the plungers 5. The combination of the flow and pulsations of the water causes the ore to stratify on top of the first sieve 12. The concentrate ring 20 is adjusted to a height above the sieve so that only ore particles of concentrate value will pass between it and the sieve. The draw-off tube end 15 is then adjusted to a height above the sieve so that concentrate will fall downwardly through the tube 14. When the concentrate runs rather heavy the concentrate ring can be raised to permit a rather rapid discharge through the draw-off tube. When the concentrate gets lean the concentrate ring should be lowered and the tube end 15 should'be elevated to prevent lean concentrate from escaping through the draw-off tube. The adjustment of the ring and the tube end must be watched carefully and adjusted promptly as the ore changes in value, as otherwise the bed of stratified materials will be lost and withdrawal of the concentrate of desired value is upset for a substantial period of time, as is required for the bed to be re-formed.

The escape of materials from the rst cell to the second cell is regulated by the height of feed in the chute 29, the rate of water flow and pulsation thereof, the rate of draw-off through the pipe 14 and the height of the first gate 28. The material escaping over this gate 28 then forms a bed of stratified material on the sieve 12a and the concentrate ring 20 and the draw-off tube 15 of the second cell is again regulated as described for the first cell. The escape of materials over the top of the gate 28 separating the second and third cell then supplies the third cell with material which stratiiies on top of the sieve 12b. The concentrate ring 20 and the draw-off tube 15 of the third cell are adjusted to withdraw the concentrate from this cell. The material which escapes over the top of the iinal gate 28 is waste material or tailings. If the concentrate is too lean t0 be acceptable, or if the head feed starts running so lean that the operator sees the danger of losing his bed in the second or third cell, or both, he can divert the draw-olf from the third cell to the conveyor 38 merely by swinging the discharge pipe 37 to proper position thereby causing the draw-off from the third cell to be re-cycled. The valves 13, 13a and 13b may be opened from time to time to discharge the fines which found their way through the sieves and into the hutches.

What I claim is: 4

l. A mineral jig comprising a series of cells, each of said cells comprising a hutch, a sieve mounted on said hutch near the top thereof adapted to receive a supply of particles to be classified, means supplying a ow of Water to said hutch and through said sieve, means pulsating said `water causing said particles to stratify, a concentrate ring for each of said cells located immediately above its sieve, a concentrate draw-off tube extending from a point above said sieve within said ring through said hutch, a supporting member tixedly secured to said concentrate ring having vertical guides therefor on the top o f said hutch above said sieve, said supporting member having at least one gear rack attached thereto, a pinion for engaging said rack rotatable with a shaft journalled in the top of said hutch, and a hand wheel for said shaft readily available to an operator of the jig for raising and lowering said concentrate ring with respect to its sieve.

2. A mineral jig comprising a series of cells, each of said cells comprising a hutch, a stationary sieve mounted on said hutch near the top thereof, the top of said hutch forming a boundary wall around said sieve to aid in retaining material thereon to be classified, means supplying a flow of water to said hutch and through said sieve, means pulsating said water causing said material to stratify according to specific gravity, a concentrate ring above said sieve, a plate member integral with said concentrate ring extending across said sieve from -front to rear of the jig, vertical guides for said plate member mounted in the front and rear of the wall of said hutch, rack and pinion means associated -with said plate member supported by bearings mounted in the wall of said hutch, a hand wheel associated with said pinion operative by a jig operator to raise and lower` said concentrate ring with respect to said sieve, a concentrate draw-off tube extending from a point above said sieve within said concentrate ring downwardly through said hutch, said draw-oit tube having an extensible end piece iltted into the upper end thereof, and manual means for regulating the height of the upper end of said end piece above said sieve.

3. A mineral jig comprising a series of cells, each of said cells comprising a hutch, a stationary sieve mounted on said hutch near the top thereof, the top of said hutch forming a boundary wall around said sieve to aid in retaining material thereon to be classified, means supplying a iiow of water to said hutch and through said sieve, means pulsating said water causing said material to stratify according to specific gravity, a concentrate ring above said sieve, a plate member integral withsaid concentrate ring extending across said sieve from front to rear of the jig, vertical guides for said plate member mounted in the front and rear of the wall of said hutch, rack and pinion means associated with said plate member supported :by bearings mounted inthe wall of said hutch, a hand wheel associated with said pinion operative by a jig operator to raise and lower said concentrate ring with respect to said sieve, a concentrate draw-off tube extending from a point above said sieve within said concentrate ring downwardly through said hutch, said draw-ori tube having an extensible end piece fitted into the upper end thereof, a threaded member connected to said end piece for the support thereof projecting upwardly through said draw ring, said plate having a threaded ring attached thereto, said threaded member engaging said ring and having a hand wheel on the outer end thereof, said hand wheel being easily available to a jig operator for elevating and lowering said extension with respect to said sieve.

4. A mineral jig comprising a series of three cells, each of said cells comprising a hutch, a stationary sieve mounted on said hutch near the top thereof, each of said sieves having a )boundary wall therearound to assist in maintaining a depth of material to be classified thereon, the wall separating the first and second cells, the wall separating the second and third cells and the iinal end wall ot the third cell each having a gate incorporated therein for controlling the escape of material from the top of each sieve, each of said gates having gear means associated therewith for elevating and lowering the height thereof, each of said gates acting as a solid dam to require all materials rejected by the preceding cell to low across the top thereof, and manually operable means supported by said boundary walls for individually actuating each of said gear means.

5. A mineral jig comprising a series of cells, each of said cells comprising a hutch, a stationary sieve mount.- ed on said hutch near the top thereof, each of said sieves having a boundary Wall therearound to assist in maintaining a depth of material to `be classiied, the walls separating said cells and the nal end wall of the last cell of the series each having a gate incorporated therein, a rack and pinion associated with each of said gates and said walls, manually operable means for actuating said pinions for elevating and lowering each of said gates, a concentrate ring adjustably mounted above each of said sieves, a concentrate draw-olf tube extending from a point within each of said concentrate rings through each of said sieves and its hutch, each of said tubes having an extensible end iitted therein, manually operable means for. regulating the height of each of said concentrate rings above its sieve, and manually operable means for regulating the height of each of said tube extensions with respect to its tube.

6. The combination of a jig comprising a series of cells, each of said cells comprising a hutch, a stationary sieve covering said hutch, and adapted to receive material to be classified, means supplying a ow ofwater to said hutch and through said sieve, means pulsating said water thereby causing said material to stratify, a concentrate ring immediately above said sieve, a concentrate draw-olf tube leading from the space on said sieve enclosed by said concentrate ring to a delivery point below said hutch, and an elevator having an endless series of buckets extending from a point horizontally below said hutches to a point of discharge substantially above the top of said sieves, means diverting the draw-olf products from one of said cells to the buckets of said elevator, and selective means directing the products from said point of discharge to the top of one of said sieves.

7. The combination of -a mineral classifying jig comprising a series of similar cells, each comprising a hutch, a stationary sieve covering the top of said hutch adapted to receive a ow of materials to be classified, manually regulable means supplying a continuous flow of water to said hutch and through said sieve, means causing said water to pulsate, a concentrate ring immediately above said sieve, manual means for adjusting the height of said ring with respect to its sieve, a draw-ofi tube extending from a point above said sieve encompassed fby said concentrate ring to an outlet point below said hutch, and extensible end piece tted into said draw-olf tube, manually operable means for adjusting the height of said end piece with respect to its draw-off tube, a gate guarding the discharge of material from one of said cells to the next and a gate guarding the discharge of material from the final end one of cells, manual means.

tor regulating the height of the top of each of said gates above said sieves, and an elevator located at the end of the jig near said tinal cell, said elevator having an endless series of buckets extending from a point horizontally below the bottoms of said hutches to a discharge point substantially above said sieves, manually operable means for selectively diverting the material discharged by the draw-oi tube of said fina-l cell to the buckets of said elevator, and manually operable means for directing the material discharged by said buckets selectively to the top of the sieve of either one of two of said cells.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 37,888 Schell Mar. 10, 1863 959,473 Bandridge May 31, 1910 992,092 Williams May 9. 1911 2,309,275 Remer Jan. 26, 1943 2,524,036 Beauchamp Oct. 3, 1950 2,874,837 Heyer 2.... Feb. 24, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 730,459 Germany Jan. 12, 1943 

